Immigration Reform

America has a long and rich heritage of immigration. Democrats have always embraced our country’s diversity, but we also recognize that our current immigration system is broken. In recent years, debate about immigration has often been portrayed as a false choice between amnesty and mass deportation. The real debate over immigration is whether we keep a broken system that undermines our economy and national security or whether we work together to fix it.

Democrats know that real immigration reform will require both parties to set aside partisanship and come together around our country’s best interests. Immigration reform should reflect America’s tradition not only as a nation of laws but also a nation of fairness and responsibility, compassion, and prosperity.

For years, Democrats have attempted to work across the aisle to pass comprehensive legislation. We need to bring the 11 million undocumented immigrants out of the shadows and create a legal, fair, and economically viable system that holds both immigrants and employers accountable and finally to ensure that our borders are safe.

Democrats support comprehensive reform grounded in the principles of responsibility and accountability:

• Responsibility from the federal government to secure our borders: The Obama administration has dedicated unprecedented resources to securing our borders and reducing the flow of illegal traffic in both directions.
• Responsibility from unscrupulous businesses that break the law: Employers who exploit undocumented workers undermine American workers, and they have to be held accountable.
• Responsibility from people who are living in the United States illegally: Undocumented workers who are in good standing must admit that they broke the law, pay taxes and a penalty, learn English, and get right with the law before they can get in line to earn their citizenship.

An orderly, controlled border and an immigration system designed to meet our economic needs are important pillars of a healthy and robust economy. Comprehensive immigration reform is essential to continue the tradition of innovation that immigrants have brought to the American economy and to ensure a level playing field for American workers. We must never lose compassion for those who wish to improve their lives through self-determination and the realization of America’s promise.